NewsBite

Advertisement

Salona

Home-style cooking gets a slick makeover.

Assorted meze including zucchini kefte and tzatziki.
1 / 9Assorted meze including zucchini kefte and tzatziki.Supplied
Inside Salona.
2 / 9Inside Salona.Supplied
Charred octopus on fava bean puree.
3 / 9Charred octopus on fava bean puree.Danielle Castano.
Brizola (grilled pork tomahawk).
4 / 9Brizola (grilled pork tomahawk).Supplied
Dinner for two.
5 / 9Dinner for two.Supplied
Cocktails are on the menu.
6 / 9Cocktails are on the menu.Supplied
King prawn yiouvetsi.
7 / 9King prawn yiouvetsi.Supplied
Crispy calamari.
8 / 9Crispy calamari.Supplied
It looks more like a contemporary lounge.
9 / 9It looks more like a contemporary lounge.Supplied

Critics' Pick

Greek$$

There’s a charm offensive at work the moment you walk into Salona. “We seat the good-looking people in the window,” your host might quip, before handing you a list of cocktails with Greek influence (see: the espresso martini, made with baklava syrup).

You’d never guess this restaurant is well into its sixth decade, looking more like a contemporary lounge than a time-honoured taverna, but the assured cooking is a clue to that longevity. Tarama is whipped to creamy, tangy excellence, and saganaki is served with a smear of apricot jam. A beautifully pan-cooked hunk of kingfish, teamed with beetroot and its leaves, is bracing and sweet all at once.

There are modern flourishes here and there, and ingredients are carefully sourced, but at its heart Salona is a third-generation family restaurant that wants you to feel like family, too.

Continue this series

Melbourne’s Eastern Suburbs
Up next
Yum cha at Secret Kitchen.

Secret Kitchen

The most fun you’ll ever have in a shopping centre.

Sliced beef pho at Super Bowl.

Super Bowl

Brightly lit canteen for soup with a K-pop backing track.

Previous
Yentafo pink noodle soup.

Ranong Town

Southern Thai that’ll knock your socks off.

See all stories

From our partners

Advertisement
Advertisement

Original URL: https://www.watoday.com.au/goodfood/vic-good-food-guide/salona-20240404-p5fheh.html